Photographic-printing mask.



J. FITZ, JR. PHOTOGRAPHIG PRINTING MASK. APlLIOATION FILED JAN.14, 1969.

Patented June 7, 1910.

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' UNITED STATES PATENT oEEIoE.

JOHN FITZ, J'Ra, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR F ONE-HALF TO- PHOTOGRAPHIC-PRINTING MASK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 7, 1910.

Application filed January 14, 1909. Serial No. 472,243.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN Frrz, J r., a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Germantown,Philadelph1a, county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Photographic-Printing Masks, of which the followin is a full, clear, and exact description, re erence being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

The main objects of this invention are to provide a photographic mask or device which may be used in printing from a negative to produce a tinted mat or background for the picture, simultaneousl with the printing of the picture; to provide a photographic mask that may be used for printing .to produce an unprinted marginal surface or border surrounded by a tinted mat; to provide aplurality of different devices of the character described to produce various results; and to provide other improvements as will appear hereinafter.

In the accompanyin drawings, Figure l is a front plan view 0 a picture having an unprinted border and a uniformly tinted mat or background; Fi s. 2, 3 and 4 are front plan views of p otographic masks constructed in accordance with this invention.

Referring to the drawings, one embodiment of th1s invention comprises a mask 1, made of transparent material, preferably of "a thin sheet of celluloid of rectangular shape and having a central rectangular opening 2, which is surrounded by a relatively narrow preferably opaque border or belt portion 3, which may be formed upon the celluloid by covering a portion of the celluloid with an opaque paint. ,The opening 2 in the mask is the usual opening for a negative, the opening being proportioned so that the edges thereof will overlap the edges on the negative, and the border or belt portion 3 is proportioned to cover the ed es of the negative.

. The mask 1 is preferab y made of a uniformly tinted or colored celluloid, and of a color which will permit only the proper amount of light to pass through the mask, for instance ellow celluloid may be used, as indicated in fig. 2, or green celluloid, as indicated in Fig. 3, or red celluloid as indicated in Fi 4, in formin the mask. These colors of ce luloid have different degrees respectively of permeability to actinic rays of light, or in other words, to that kind of light that is useful in hotographic printing processes and there ore different results would be produced by the different colors. The various colors of celluloid used for the mask are all translucent and in most cases-also transparent. Celluloid is preferred for the mask as it is homogeneous and will permit light to pass uniformly therethrough to give an even flat tint in printing, without any mottled appearance. It is also preferred on account of its durability and the ease of keeping it clean and because of its other well known desirable qualities. By combining color with the celluloid, a mask may be made that will form an effective shield against the passage of part of the kind of light used in printing, and the mask may still be transparent so that the operator can readily place 1t in position for printing.

In the process of printing, the negative is the positive 5 of the photographic negative in the center of the sheet and surrounded by an unprinted margin or border 6, which in turn is surrounded by a tinted mat or background 7. The tint of the background will be light or dark according to the color of the mask used, for instance, with the same length of exposure to light, a green color in the mask would produce a darker tint in the mat than would be produced by a yellow mask, and a yellow mask would produce a darker tint in the mat than that which would be produced by a red mask. 1

As different negatives require different times of exposure to the light in printing, it is evident that different colored masks would be required with different negatives to produce the same tone of mat or background. For instance a dense negative, which requires a comparatively lon exposure in printing, might require a re mask, and a thin negative a green mask, and a medium negative a yellow mask, to produce mats of the same tints surrounding the pictures. With the same negative the mats of difierent colors or combinations of masks of the same or' different colors might be used to produce mats'of different tints surround.- ing the different pictures printed from the ne ative, and to produce lines or borders of di erent or contrasting tones around the negative or the pictures printed therefrom.

Before this invention, the process of printing a picture surrounded by an unprinted border and having a tinted mat required a process of several steps and considerable manipulation. The negative was first inclosed by an opaque mask covering all of the paper to be printed upon except the portion inclosed by the marginal line of the picture. The paper thus protected was then exposed to the light until the picture was printed. The ne ative and opaque mask were then remove and a second mask substituted covering the printed portionof the picture and also the border or margin surrounding the picture, and a second exposure to the light was then made to tint the mat surrounding the border. By this old process it was very difficult to obtain results which were uniform and the labor and time required were about double what arerequired when the picture and the tinted mat are both printed by a single operation by the aid' of the improved mask forming the subject-matter of this application. By the use of this improved mask not only is a saving effected in time and labor but also an improvement in quality of the results is secured, the mat being tinted uniformly and without the mottled appearance which often results from former methods. As when the improved mask is used the printing of the picture and the tinting of the mat proceed simultaneously, if the picture is either undertimed or overtimed in printing, the mat will be 001'- respondin ly timed and aproper relation will there ore always be maintained between the picture and the tint of the mat, a.v result which was impossible by former methods.

Although this invention has been shown only in its preferred form and only in a few of the combinations of color which may be used, it is not intended to be limited to the partlcular form disclosed or to any particular combinations of color or to any material, as many changes might be made in the form of the device, in the material used and in the combinations of color, without depart ing from the spirit of this invention or the scope of the appended claims.

Havin thus fully described. my invention, what I c aim and desire to protect by Let-- ters Patent of the United States is:

1. A photographic printing mask, consistin of a sheet having a border portion capable of preventing entirely the transmission of actinic rays, and a portion surrounding said border portion which permits the passage of actinic rays.

2. A photographic printingmask consisting of a sheet having a border portion and a surrounding portion, said border portion bcing capable of reventing the passage therethrough of actmic rays to a greater degree than the surrounding portion.

3. A photographic printing mask comprising a sheet having an opening therein for the negative, and an opaque border for said opening, the ortion of said sheet outside of said border ing capable of transferring actinic rays.

4. A photographic printing mask comprising a sheet having an opening therein for the negative, and an opaque border for said opening, the portion of said sheet outside of said border being capable of transmitting certain actinic rays and filtering out other actinic rays.

5. A hotographic printingmask comprising a s leet having an opening therein for the negative, and an o aque border for said opening, the border 0 said sheet surrounding said border being capable of transmiting actinic light with diminished intensity.

6. A photographic printing mask, consisting of a sheet having an opening therein. for

a negative, said sheet bein composed of celluloid having an opaque dy portion surrounding said openmg and the remainder so colored as to permit the passage of actinic rays. 4

7..v A photographic printing mask, consisting of a sheet having an opening therein for a negative, and a border portion surroundingsaid opening and extending outwardly from said opening for a ortion of the width of said mask, said bor' er portion and the remainin ortion of said mask being colored in ifierent ways so as to prevent the passage of actinic rays through said border portion, and to permit the passage of actinic rays through said remaining portion.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 12th day of January, A. D., 1909.

I JOHN FITZ, JR. Witnesses:

A. I. GARDNER, ALEXANDER PARK. 

